1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of agricultural equipment, and more specifically, to a scraper for the seed boot and depth wheel sides of the opener disc on a John Deere 90-Series single-disc opener air seeder.
2. Description of the Related Art
A number of different types of scrapers have been patented, but none is specifically designed for the John Deere 90-Series single-disc opener air seeder. For that reason, none of the scrapers discussed below has the unique mounting system of the present invention. In addition, none of the prior art scrapers is designed for use on the depth wheel side of the disc of an air seeder, as is one of the embodiments in the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,386,127 (Prairie et al., 2002) provides a disc opener assembly for a seed planter manufactured by Case Corporation of Racine, Wis. The disc opener assembly includes a disc scraper that self-aligns with the disc (on the seed boot side) and maintains contact with the disc as the scraper edge wears. The claimed self-alignment is effectuated by a spring located between the scraper and the scraper mount. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 of the '127 patent, the scraper described by Prairie et al. is not at all similar to the present invention in terms of size, shape, location on the disc, or the way it mounts to the disc.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,237,696 (Mayerle, 2001) shows another type of scraper for an air seeder disc. The scraper described in the '696 patent is specifically designed for the air seeder manufactured by Flexi-Coil Ltd. of Saskatchewan, Canada. According to the inventors, the scraper flexes against the disc to compensate for deflections in the disc blade as it displaces the soil. This flexibility is provided by a thick resilient pad of rubber or rubber-like material secured between the scraper mount and the mounting region of the scraper plate. The upper end of the scraper plate is held firm against the resilient pad by two fasteners, which partially constrain the scraper deflection. The alignment of the scraper edge against the disc surface will change slightly depending on whether and to what extent both fasteners are tightened. As with the Prairie scraper, the scraper described in the '696 patent is dissimilar to the present invention in terms of both design and function.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,874,584 (Butterfield et al., 2005) involves another scraper for an air seeder, but this particular scraper is designed for an air seeder manufactured by Bourgault Industries Ltd. of Saskachewan, Canada. The scraper described in this patent is oriented so that it is in close proximity to or touching the lower portion of the trailing face of the disc adjacent to an outer edge of the disc. The scraper is adjustably attached so that the scraper blade can be moved inward and away from the edge of the disc as the disc edge wears. The scraper is biased against the face of the disc by a coil spring attached to the scraper bracket. As with the previous two scrapers described herein, the Butterfield scraper would not work on a John Deere 90-Series single-disc opener air seeder because it is specifically designed for the air seeder of another manufacturer.
The present invention is a scraper for a single-disc opener air seeder. An air seeder is sometimes referred to as an air dill. An air seeder or air drill is a seeding tool which has many furrow “openers.” The term “opener” refers to the fact that the machine is “opening” the ground or making a furrow for the reception of seed. There are double-disc openers as well, and there are scrapers that have been designed specifically for such double-disc openers. Examples include U.S. Pat. No. 5,318,133 (Logue, 1994), U.S. Pat. No. 5,060,586 (Hoyt, 1991), and U.S. Pat. No. 744,711 (Bills, 1903).
Scrapers have also been designed for various types of ground tillage implements. Examples of these types of scrapers include U.S. Pat. No. 6,260,632 (Bourgault et al., 2001); U.S. Pat. No. 6,223,832 (Hook et al., 2001); U.S. Pat. No. 6,024,179 (Bourgault, 2000); U.S. Pat. No. 5,507,351 (Martin, 1996); U.S. Pat. No. 4,858,699 (Poltrock, 1989); U.S. Pat. No. 4,330,041 (Ankenman, 1982); U.S. Pat. No. 4,127,179 (Heersink et al., 1978); U.S. Pat. No. 4,113,030 (Walker, 1978); U.S. Pat. No. 4,008,770 (Boone et al., 1977); U.S. Pat. No. 3,833,067 (Peterson, Jr., et al., 1974); U.S. Pat. No. 3,261,411 (Youngberg et al., 1966); U.S. Pat. No. 1,837,347 (Vandine, 1931); U.S. Pat. No. 1,723,705 (Packer, 1929); U.S. Pat. No. 1,721,876 (Davis et al., 1929); and U.S. Pat. No. 832,938 (Waterman 1906). U.S. Pat. No. 4,883,126 (Leland, 1989) involves a scraper for a ridge till planter.